To All the Dogs I Loved Before

  In this blog post, I review Lizzie Shane’s To All the Dogs I Loved Before, the third installment in the Pine Hollow contemporary romance series. This endearing romance has plenty of sweet scenes with a hint of humor.  This contemporary romance has a great mash-up of grumpy-sunshine and second chance for the tropes that makes this an awesome lovely story. It all started when the town newsletter’s editor reported that Elinor Rodriguez was back together with her ex-fiance Levi Jackson. In Pine Hollow, Vermont, it gave their small town something to talk about and speculate. Though it wasn’t true and nothing but conjecture. But when Elinor’s Aussie Dory keeps escaping from her home, Police Chief Levi Jackson keeps bringing it back to her, safe and sound. Elinor, the school librarian, has always hated Levi for blindsiding her on their broken engagement three years ago. She didn’t know why or for what reason. While she deals with her younger sister Charlotte’s relationship problems, she has aspirations to become a published author. For Levi, he had kept a secret he never told anyone: he has dyslexia. And he didn’t want to be anything like his old man and how he treated women. But everytime when Dory escaped, he was always on call to bring it back to Elinor, though he always took care of her and did things for her when she least expected it. While being the police chief for Pine Hollow, he was always there for her and his friends. But in the end, would he tell the truth to Elinor about his true feelings for her to make things right?

 This heart-warming contemporary romance is moving and heartfelt. I cared for Elinor, who always thought she was perfect in everyone’s eyes. She might be too harsh on Charlotte and cared for Dory and her students. And she would never give up on love and on her dreams. I adored Lexi, since he’s diverse as a main character with a learning disability. We don’t see that everyday and need more of them in novels. I loved how he became fond of Dory and looked out for people in Pine Hollow.  Dory was a hoot and adorably sweet Aussie who loved Levi and Elinor.  The location of Pine Hollow, Vermont, is lovely and wholesome for a small New England town with picturesque scenic settings. The theme of the story is no one’s truly perfect when love will find the way.

This sweet contemporary romance is recommended for those who love dogs in the story with a second chance storyline. I rated this book, four out of five stars for no reason. If you love romances with non-stop romantic action, plenty of suspenseful drama, and hints of sweet loving romance, add To All the Dogs I Loved Before to your TBR list . This book is recommended for fans who love Hallmark Movies, Kristan Higgins, Jill Shalvis, and Marina Adair.

Out of the Blue

  In this blog post, I reviewed Colette Makray’s Out of the Blue. This inspirational fiction novella is heart-warming that pulls at your heart strings. It all started when Tess Beckett, a young widow, runs a pet-friendly lodge in the Northern Wilderness. While mourning the loss of her husband Tom, a dog appeared in her life that was named “Tom” . She named him Blue before he was gone in the instant. Then she met K-9 Police Officer Brandon Bishop and his old dog Toto. They needed a break from the scrutiny of Toto’s ability when they didn’t find a girl during their last case together. And socialite Joanne Lawrence and her son Gavin was there with his dog Derby. She’s too busy to watch over him until he goes missing in the woods. Then Blue returns to her aide and bonds with her, when he later joins Brandon and Toto and the others to go looking for him and find him safely from harm. In the end, everyone deserved a much deserved happy ending, though for some, it might be bittersweet.

This was a sweet inspirational fiction and tailor-made for dog lovers. I loved how each dog bonded with their owners: how Derby protected Gavin from harm, how Toto found Gavin and had sought final redemption, and how Tess claimed Blue for her own. Dogs are a central family member who we would love and cherish forever with a unshakeable bond.  We all see them as heroes and become their closest friend. I loved the Beckett Lodge set near the Canadian Wilderness and near a lake. It was picturesque to set a sweet tender-hearted story from the interior and to the exterior.  The dual themes of the story is having a friendship with a dog and never stop believing in miracles.

I really liked this novella since it was a quick read and a moving story. I had a few nitpicks in the story: there weren’t any chapter break/scenes breaks between unnumbered chapters on the pages, just white spaces to change POVs. Those weren’t numbered.  Plus there were too short. The characters needed to be fleshed out a bit more with deep POV, instead of using passive/filter words to make it stronger. A little bit of description couldn’t hurt to picture these characters with their dogs. And I’ve found some glaring minor errors that could’ve been fixed with a proofread and a spellcheck before it went to print. This  sweet inspirational romance would make you cry and let out a sigh. I rated this book, three out of five stars, because it ended way too soon, along with the above mentioned errors on my nitpicks. If you love dog-centric novels with a hint of inspiration, some drama and non-stop action, and a dose of heart-warming moments, Out of the Blue is the way you’re going to need a Kleenex for.